BACKGROUND AND AIMS Allopolyploidy and intraspecific heteroploid crosses are associated, in certain groups, with changes in the mating system. The genus Sorbus represents an appropriate model to study the relationships between ploidy and reproductive mode variations. Diploid S. aria and tetraploid apomictic S. austriaca were screened for ploidy and mating system variations within pure and sympatric populations in order to gain insights into their putative causalities. METHODS Flow cytometry was used to assess genome size and ploidy level among 380 S. aria s.l. and S. austriaca individuals from Bosnia and Herzegovina, with 303 single-seed flow cytometric seed screenings being performed to identify their mating system. Pollen viability and seed set were also determined. KEY RESULTS Flow cytometry confirmed the presence of di-, tri- and tetraploid cytotype mixtures in mixed-ploidy populations of S. aria and S. austriaca. No ploidy variation was detected in single-species populations. Diploid S. aria mother plants always produced sexually originated seeds, whereas tetraploid S. austriaca as well as triploid S. aria were obligate apomicts. Tetraploid S. aria preserved sexuality in a low portion of plants. A tendency towards a balanced 2m : 1p parental genome contribution to the endosperm was shared by diploids and tetraploids, regardless of their sexual or asexual origin. In contrast, most triploids apparently tolerated endosperm imbalance. CONCLUSIONS Coexistence of apomictic tetraploids and sexual diploids drives the production of novel polyploid cytotypes with predominantly apomictic reproductive modes. The data suggest that processes governing cytotype diversity and mating system variation in Sorbus from Bosnia and Herzegovina are probably parallel to those in other diversity hotspots of this genus. The results represent a solid contribution to knowledge of the reproduction of Sorbus and will inform future investigations of the molecular and genetic mechanisms involved in triggering and regulating cytotype diversity and alteration of reproductive modes.

In this study, types and distribution of trichomes, chemical composition of the essential oil, as well as phenolic compounds’ contents of two Balcanic Micromeria Benth. species from section Pseudomelissa, Micromeria albanica (Griseb. ex K. Malý) Silic and M. dalmatica Benth., were investigated. Non-glandular trichomes, peltate trichomes, and three types of capitate trichomes were observed on leaves, calyces, and stems. The yield of the essential oil was 0.5% for each species. In general, 36 different essential oil compounds were identified in M. albanica and 21 in M. dalmatica, representing 86.9% and 88.6% of the total oil, respectively. The essential oil was characterized by the high content of oxygenated monoterpenes (66.2% in M. albanica and 79.6% in M. dalmatica), with dominant menthane type compounds, such as menthone, pulegone, piperitenone, and piperitenone oxide. Spectrophotometrically determined contents of total polyphenols (TP), tannins (T), total flavonoids (TF), and total phenolic acids (TPA) were lower in M. albanica (3.83%, 0.88%, 0.39%, and 2.91%, respectivelly), and significantly higher in M. dalmatica (TP: 6.12% ; T: 1.28% ; TF: 0.55% ; TPA: 5.80%). The obtained results show that the investigated Micromeria species have relatively high content of phenolic compounds, which suggests that they could have considerable antioxidant activity. The presented study contributes to the knowledge on the genus Micromeria in general, and particularly on species belonging to the section Pseudomelissa.

Micromeria longipedunculata Bräuchler (syn. M. parviflora (Vis.) Rchb.) is an endemic Illyric-Balkan plant species from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and Albania. We investigated types and distribution of trichomes, pollen morphology, and chemical composition of essential oil (analysed by GC and GC-MS) in M. longipedunculata. Non-glandular trichomes, peltate trichomes, and two types of capitate trichomes (type 1 composed of one basal epidermal cell, and one head cell with subcuticular space; type 2 composed of one basal epidermal cell, two or three stalk cells, and one head cell with subcuticular space) were observed on leaves, bracteoles, the calyx, corolla, and the stem. The pollen grains had six apertures which were set in the equatorial pollen belt and showed medium reticulate ornamentation. A phytochemical analysis of essential oils from four different localities is characterized by similar chemical composition with spathulenol (23.7–39.5%), piperitone oxide (7.7–12.1%) and piperitone (7.3–8.9%) as the major compounds.

Beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) is one of the most important forest trees in Bosnia and Herzegovina in both economic and environmental terms. The total area of forest in which beech is present is approx. 1,652,400 ha. There is a proportionate need to plant new forests and produce genetically high quality seed and saplings. Biochemical analysis of the genetic structure of eight populations of beech using ten enzyme systems from 16 isoenzyme gene loci revealed significant differences between the populations analyzed. Variance levels were high in some gene loci, while in some populations monomorphism was recorded only for individual gene loci. The average number of alleles per locus ranged from 2.1875 to 2.5625, and the average number of genotypes per locus varied from 2.6875 to 3.2500. The multilocus genetic diversity at the population level ranged from 63.276 to 162.001, and the genofund diversity varied from 1.2708 to 1.3416.The average differentiation value obtained for all populations was fairly low (Dj=5.81), indicating a percentage of overall variance of about 94.194%.

A study on the types and distribution of trichomes, pollen morphology, chemical composition of essential oil (analyzed by GC‐FID and GC/MS), and the content of macroelements (Na, K, Ca, and Mg) and trace elements (B, Fe, Cu, Mn, Zn, Al, Pb, Cr, Cd, Ni, Hg, and As) analyzed by ICP‐AES (=inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy) was conducted on Micromeria croatica (Pers.) Schott. Non‐glandular trichomes, peltate trichomes (typical hairs of Lamiaceae), small capitate trichomes (composed of one basal epidermal cell and one head cell), and larger capitate trichomes (composed of one basal epidermal cell, two to three stalk cells, and one head cell with subcuticular space) were observed on leaves, stems, the calyx, and corolla. Pollen of M. croatica had six apertures (hexacolpate) which were set in the equatorial pollen belt (zonocolpate) and showed medium reticulate ornamentation (hetrobrochate type). The essential oil contained from 27 to 39 constituents, the most representative of which were caryophyllene oxide and E‐caryophyllene. Among the investigated macroelements, the content of K was highest (8730–10080 mg/kg). The content of trace elements ranged from 0.12 mg/kg (Cr) to 78.00 mg/kg (Fe), while the content of Cd, Ni, Hg, and As were lower than the limit of quantification.

BackgroundandPurpose:Silverfir(AbiesalbaMill.)isoneofthemost importantforesttreespeciesintheWesternBalkanareafrombotheconomic and ecological aspect. Its distribution has for years been the subject of scientific research, the reason being that silver fir from these areas displays very interesting morphological and genetic differentiation. Material and methods: The development of modern methods and the use of nad5-4 marker have solved the problem of contact zones of silver fir originating from the Apennine and Balkan glacial refugia in the Western Balkan area. The objective of this study was to determine the boundary of gene introgression of silver fir derived from the Apennine and Balkan glacial refugia in the western Balkan populations with the use of isoenzymes. Twenty-four selected populations from Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia were investigated. Nine enzyme systems were studied, polymorphicgenelociwerescoredandsoweretheirallelictypes.Theanalysisof generalgeneticparametersdidnotallowforanyconclusion,andneitherdid the analysis of genetic distances. For this reason, the allele distribution was analyzed. Results and Conclusions: Statistical analysis showed the separation of the populations from Croatia which belong to the group west of the contact zone.Inthepopulationsalongthecontactzoneandinthosefromtheeastern part,thegroupingdidnotshowanyregularityoranyclinalvariability.The mainreasonforthisisattributedto highecologicaldiversity,fragmentation and the occurrence of genetic drift. It can be concluded that silver fir originating from the Balkan refugium was more widely distributed in the past,butisnowconstantlyretreatinginrelationtothatoriginatingfromthe Apennines. Another hypothesis is that it may have reached southern Germany through a similar gene flow. The impact of the alleles originating from the Apennine refugium is also present in the eastern parts of Bosnia.

The wild cherry (Prunus avium) has great and multiple importance. The fruits it produces are used for several purposes (as food for people, birds and other animals, as well as in phytotherapy). As many birds and mammals feed on the fruit of the wild cherry, it has the ability of dispersion over large areas in a very short time. It occurs from river deposits up to 1900 m/alt, while it is quite rare in the Submediterranean. Wild cherry grows as a solitary tree or in small groups, usually at the edge of the forest or within the forest in areas with more sunlight. The significance of the wild cherry is reflected in the high economic value of its wood, which makes it much demanded and popular, and thus endangered. The plant material was collected from 22 natural populations in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The fruit and leaves were collected from marginal or solitary trees, usually from the south-facing, outer sun-exposed parts of the tree crown. We measured the following fruit characteristics: fruit length (FL), fruit width (FW), fruit thickness (FT), seed length (SL), seed width (SW), seed thickness (ST), length of the stalk (LOS) and width of the stalk (WOS), and leaf characteristics: length of the petiole (LP), length of the leaf blade (LB), distance from the blade's base to the blade's widest part (BBW), width of the leaf blade (WB), insertion angle of the leaf venation (AV), number of leaf teeth on a 2-cm length (NT), blade width at 1 cm from the blade apex (WBA) and blade width at 1 cm from the blade's base (WBB). All statistical analysis of the data were made using the SPSS 15.0 package for Windows. The results obtained show the presence of a high level of intrapopulation, as well as interpopulation, morphological variability in the natural populations of the wild cherry which have been investigated. Analyses of population differentiation have not confirmed our expectations. Our results only indicate differentiation in the fruit size characteristics, but the indicators are very weak. The resulting high values of the regression coefficient in this research can serve to estimate the values of some features and characteristics without their measurement. The analyses of 16 morphological characteristics in 22 natural populations of the wild cherry in Bosnia and Herzegovina showed statistically significant differences between investigated populations. Differentiation in natural populations of the wild cherry was very low and identified only in fruit dimension characteristics.

Abstract In most European countries, the service tree (Sorbus domestica L.) is a rare and threatened species and its conservation has been recognised as a priority. The aim of this study was to asses its morphologic variation in the western and central part of the Balkan Peninsula and in southern Central Europe. Three populations were analysed: one in Serbia, one in Bosnia and Herzegovina and one in Slovenia. In each population 30 trees were selected, and from each tree 30 leaves were collected for morphometric analysis based on nine leaflet morphological traits. Univariate (ANOVA) and multivariate (MANOVA) analysis of variance were used to estimate the variation within- and between populations and a discriminant analysis was performed to examine the structure of the between-population differences. The values of particular morphological traits found in our study did not differ considerably from the values reported elsewhere. The results revealed significant within- and between population variation. Variation within populations was highly significant for all the scored leaf morphological traits, while variation between populations was significant for all the studied traits except for the leaflet length. The discrimination between the three populations was significant. High percentages of correctly classified samples demonstrate good discriminating employability of the analysed leaf morphological traits and indicate differentiation of the analysed populations.